Phantom Shorts
by JuneLuxray2
Summary: Various little short stories with our beloved DP characters- ratings vary with story.
1. Meteor Shower

**P.s. as a note for anonymous reviewers, I don't find your flames, but seriously, anonymously submitting them so I can't respond to chat about it is for cowards. You shouldn't submit flames if you can't back up an intelligent debate over it.  
**

**Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman**

**Story (c) Me**

The sky was pink and orange, painted as blazes in the setting sky. Cirrus clouds, pink from the sky, hung in the air like little icicles, long and pretty. A light, comforting breeze gently shook the grass as waves in an ocean of blades. A hill sat before this sight, looking over the houses and occasional farms that went out beneath the endless sky. A willow tree hung over the hill, its roots awkwardly gripping onto the side of the hill. The leaves looked almost like little moths with wings wide open as the branches hung down.

It took a special person to see this all, despite the simplicity of its beauty. As the sky began to take in some darker blue as the sun slipped under the houses in the distance, a boy and a girl began to come up the hill in the outskirts of Amity Park. "Danny!" the girl called. "Pull your weight, man!" she yelled with a mischievous grin as she ran even faster up the hill.

"Sam!" the boy called back in frustration, brushing black locks out of his eyes. "It's not my fault you have combat boots and I don't!" he shouted, gasping for air at suddenly going into a sprint trying to catch up with the girl. She paused for a moment, as if to let him catch up, then rolled her eyes with a smirk and ran even faster up, turning her face and black hair away from the boy. When she got to the top of the hill, she sat under the tree and waited for him. Danny caught up, almost falling flat on his face from lack of grace as he got to the top.

"Sam-pant-next-pant-time you-pant-run up the-pant-hill, warn me, okay?" he said, catching his breath. She laid on her back.

"Danny, my boy, that ruins half of the fun to see you struggling up the hill."

"Hardy-har-har. You didn't have to run up with a bag with a telescope inside! And water bottles!" he protested. Sam rolled her eyes.

"Danny, that telescope hardly weighs a pound, and you can handle carrying two water bottles. Look-" she pointed out the sky as she got up and out from under the willow tree. "The sky is setting. Soon we can stargaze. Go ahead and take a drink while we're waiting." Sam said, taking her bottle from the bag (might I mention she insisted on reusable bottles?) and drinking. Danny unpacked his and drank up, going through three-fourths of the water in one swig. Sam hardly noticed as she capped her bottle and put it back. Danny stared at his bottle.

"Er, Sam?"

"What?" she asked, looking over. She looked at the bottle and rolled her eyes. "Make sure to save some of that water for later in case you get thirsty." she advised. Danny blushed lightly and put it back. By this point, the pink and orange had faded with the sun, and the night was coming. Danny pulled out the telescope and put it in place, right outside the willow. Sam sat next to him as he sat, waiting for the darkness to settle.

"There was supposed to be a meteor shower tonight, right?" Sam asked. Danny smiled.

"Yep! I'll spare you all the excited space-nerd stuff so you can see for yourself. Hehe..." he said, chuckling. Sam giggled lightly in response. After a few minutes, the sky was a pitch black, and white dwarfs in the sky that were shining seemed to smile down on the two. Both teens shared a surprised gasp when the first meteor went across the sky. More began to follow.

"Wow..." Sam gasped. "It's beautiful." she murmured. Danny smiled.

"Yeah. Why don't you take a look in the telescope for a better look?" he said enthusiastically. She grinned and looked into the scope. She gasped.

"It's amazing! Nature truly does have spectacular views!" she said, awed. She passed the eyepiece over to Danny as he got to peer in. A wide smile was on him.

"So worth being forced to run up the hill. You only see a few of these things in your lifetime. Of course, maybe that's what makes it so-"

"Special." the two said in unison. They shared another look, then blushed lightly. They continued watching for a while, talking in-between a few times. When it was over, Sam stood and stretched.

"It was beautiful. Thanks for taking me, Danny. Oh, and..." she quickly gripped the telescope, put it in the bag along with the water bottles, and began to run down the hill. "PULL YOUR WEIGHT AGAIN!" she called, laughing like a maniac the whole way down. Danny cursed under his breath as he grabbed the bag and ran down to catch up. Sam was waiting at the foot of the hill.

"Niiice. Of course, going downhill is easier than uphill..." she paused and allowed Danny to catch his breath. Danny then smiled a little, embarrassed.

"Er...Sam...Listen, I had a really great time with you tonight." he said. Sam smiled back.

"As did I..." she looked around, then at her feet, then Danny. "Mind giving me a lift home?" Danny grinned.

"Sure, I'd love to." he said, changing into his ghost form. She gripped onto him and the bag as he took off into the night sky, his black suit melting into the scenery of the night. If it weren't for his white hair, gloves, and boots, you couldn't even spot him and Sam flying. As he landed in front of her house, gently placing her down, she blushed again, this time a little redder.

"Err...Danny...Good night." she said. She then planted a kiss on his cheek, making his cheeks go a cherry red. "I hope we can do something like this again sometime."

"Uh-uh...yeah..." Danny said, still blushing. "G'night."

"Night!" she responded, heading into her house. Danny stood there for a minute, then gave a contented sigh and picked up the bag and headed home. The moon seemed to shine on him as he flew- or maybe it was just joy.


	2. Fire Ants

** Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman**

** Story (c) Me**

**Request by ilovedannyphantom914 on deviantART.  
**

"Danny! Come help me make a sandcastle right!" Jazz called to her little brother.

"Okay!" he called back. The ten year old ran across the sand to his twelve-year-old sister and knelt down. His sister smiled and overturned the bucket, a miniature tower of sand coming out. Danny instantly began to design little doors and windows into it while Jazz made more towers and stuck sticks in the top of it, just like a castle had flags. Danny and Jazz always made sandcastles together- Danny was the designer, Jazz was the builder. Maddie Fenton watched with a smile as her kids built together.

She was lucky. Some siblings would fight non-stop, but Jazz and Danny were practically best friends to each other. Whenever Sam and Tucker weren't over, they would play. Oh sure, they got frustrated with the other at times, but all siblings do. She continued watching her kids. Danny corrected Jazz how and where to put the little leaf flag in. Jazz politely did as told. Danny carved into one of the towers and made a little cavern, sticking leafs in to try to support it.

Finally, the two had finished an impressive castle. Other children came over to admire it. Usually kids didn't make such an impressive castle. That is, until one tried to go into the sand themselves to make one. But before Danny and Jazz offered to help them make it, the other child spied something in the sand.

A little ant hole that would eventually become a hill. And out of the hole came a bright red ant. A "FIRE ANT!" the child screamed. Maddie wasn't sure what the kid just yelled, but all the other kids went scampering out of the sandbox while Danny and Jazz blinked.

"Fire ants?" Jazz asked. She walked up to where the kid had shouted, and her eyes failed to notice a tiny red dot in the sand. She shrugged and turned back.

"What was that?" Danny asked, curious. Jazz shrugged.

"Some kid thought they saw a fire ant. I didn't see anything. Well, at least we have the box to ourselves now. Let's go put a castle on the other side- castles can't just be one place!" she said.

"Okay!" Danny said, happy. He followed her across the box, and didn't even notice as his foot accidentally kicked the ant hill. A few more ants came out, but fled at the sight of Danny. But one ran towards him...

Maddie stopped a kid who was running out. "Excuse me, what's going on in the sand box?" she asked. The kid shuddered.

"There's fire ants. Those two kids left didn't see 'em, I guess." he said, then ran. Maddie gasped, then ran towards the box. Neither of her children noticed. As they began to build another castle, the little ant crawled up the boy's pant leg. Once it reached the back muscle of his leg, it opened its pincers and bit down. Danny's eyes bulged, then fell over, wailing and screaming. Jazz jumped in surprise and came up to her brother.

"Danny, what-"

"IT HURTS!" he shouted.

"Hurts where?"

"Jazz-" Maddie ran up and picked up the screaming Danny. "You guys didn't notice the fire ants?"

"N-no." Jazz said. Danny was crying, and she followed her mom to the bench where her Fenton First Aid kit was. Maddie laid the boy down.

"It HURTS, Mommy!" Danny cried again. She sighed.

"I know, sweetie. Where does it hurt?"

"H-here." Danny said, pointing to the back of his leg. Maddie lifted it, then spied the dangling ant on the back of his leg.

"Oh, yeah, it's got the back of your leg. One second." she said. Jazz gripped her brother's hand as he screamed when Maddie pulled the ant off and tossed it aside. He panted slightly.

"T-thank you, mom."

"Okay. C'mon. Let's get you ice from the car." she said, taking them to the car. She put him on the seat and opened the freezer she and Jack kept in the car. She pulled out an ice pack and held it on her son's leg. Jazz was apologizing.

"Danny, I'm sorry-"

"Sorry for what?" Danny asked, puzzled, as he calmed down as the pain went down from the ice.

"I didn't see the ant. If I did, we could've been fine."

"Jazz, it's not your fault." Danny said. He sniffled a little. Maddie rubbed his head.

"Hey, sweetie. What if we stopped to get ice cream? Would that make you feel better?" she asked. Danny nodded. "Mhm? Okay. Jazz, stay back there with your brother." she said, making Danny sit upright as she strapped him in. Jazz strapped herself in next to her brother. As her mom began to drive, Jazz spoke.

"Can I see where it bit?" she asked softly. Danny held up his leg in an angle for her to see. A little red bump and tiny bite marks were on his leg as she peeked under the ice their mother strapped onto it.

"It still kinda hurts." Danny said. She smiled.

"It's your battle scar."

"My battle scar?"

"Yeah...Your battle scar. Say you got into a fight and you made it out with that mark."

"My battle scar." Danny said, smiling a little. Maddie chuckled up front. Jazz always knew what to say to Danny.


	3. Fireworks

**Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman**

**Story (c) Me**

**Request by Ziafna on deviantart  
**

The sky was dark as midnight approached. All the Fentons, Foleys, and Mansons had decided to go up in the park and watch the fireworks together. The Mansons brought expensive champagne, (the Mansons had a limo they insisted on with a chauffeur as the designated driver) and the Foleys brought sparkling apple cider for the teenagers.

Of course, the three had ended up in their own little corner as they waited for fireworks- not that it surprised any of the adults, as they had been expecting that. Jazz was with them as she read a book, and the adults chattered among themselves as they poured champagne. Maddie dug through her bag she had brought, and smiled.

"Guys, I brought us each a popper. Kids, come over here."

"And get your cider while you're at it!" Mrs. Foley called. The three shared a look, then got up and ran across the small yard or two of grass between the adults and them. Maddie distributed to each of them a popper and Mrs. Foley glasses of cider, the golden drink sparkling in the lantern in the middle the Mansons had, in their usual fashion, insisted on bringing. Jack chuckled as they all took a sip of it.

"Oh no, the kids are drinkin'!" he laughed. There were light chuckles in response, and Danny pretended to fall over from drunkenness.

"Urp. Yes. I'm quite drunk. MORE BOOZE." he said. There were laughs, but Sam kicked his side lightly with her boot. He gave a small 'ow' and pouted. "Oi, geez, I promise I'm not a drunkard. I'll get up now." he said, standing. The three retreated back to their little corner, and Maddie looked at her watch. Ten minutes 'til midnight. She whistled to her their attention.

"'Kay, guys, feel free to open those poppers whenever you feel." she said. They shrugged and opened them. Danny gave a surprised 'ah!' as his made a loud CRACK when it opened. They all snickered a little.

"Hey, I wasn't expecting it to make that much noise!" Danny protested. Jazz rolled her eyes.

"Danny, they're poppers. What did you expect?" she said. Danny shrugged.

"...I don't know..." he paused for a minute at the smell of brief smoke from the thing inside the popper that made the crack, then flipped it over to see what was inside. A flimsy blue paper crown, a yellow noisemaker, and a little pit of paper fell out. He opened the bit of paper.

Inside, it had a 'joke'. 'What happened to the man who couldn't tell the difference between toothpaste and putty? His windows fell out!'

Danny stared at the joke. What...? Sam and Tucker read over his shoulder. Tucker whistled.

"That's officially the lamest joke I've ever seen on a popper. And that's saying something." he said. Danny shrugged and took a sip of his cider.

"Well, I suppose it's not like they can put jokes in like 'what happened to the hooker?'." he said. Sam covered her laugh in a 'pfft' and tried to cover her giggling. This failed as the others looked over.

"What's so funny?" Mr. Manson asked, confused. Sam giggled, then spoke.

"Oh, Danny-boy just made a funny." she said. "He looked at the lame joke on his, then said it's not like they can put jokes in like 'what happened to the hooker?'."

"_Sam!_" Danny hissed in embarrassment. He didn't desire for any of the parents to hear what he said. But to his surprised, they all laughed. His face was burning a bright red.

"Hah, good one." Jack said. Maddie looked at her watch again, then grinned.

"Guys! One minute 'til midnight!" she said. All murmured a little. Maddie began to count down when it reached ten seconds 'til.

"Ten...Nine...Eight...Seven...Six...Five...Four...Three...Two...One...HAPPY NEW YEAR!" they all shouted. Danny used his noise maker as did others with one, and fireworks in the sky began in a brilliant explosion of yellow sparks that billowed out in a round circle, then faded away with a few streaks of smoke in the sky, the gray hardly noticable against the black sky. As more went off of all colors, red, green, blue, and purple, they watched.

"...So, guys..." Tucker said, getting their attention. "What're your new years resolutions?" he asked. Danny shrugged.

"I don't know. Maybe get more control over duplication. Maybe even tell my parents my secret this year. I'm not sure yet." he murmured, looking back at his parents. His friends shared a look, then Sam said hers.

"Maybe get better at writing poetry. You, Tucker?" she asked. Tucker smirked.

"Earn enough to buy the newest PDA, of course! My Christmas money is already helping with that." he said. The two smiled, then continued watching the fireworks. Tucker looked down at their hands.

Danny's hand was atop Sam's- and neither even noticed. In fact, it looked almost as if they were leaning toward each other- and they were. Tucker said something. "Er, be right back."

"'Kay." they responded. Tucker got up and walked toward his bag craftily, some adults looking over and wondering what he was up to. He stealthily looked through his bag, before feeling what he was looking for. Yes! He pulled it out. A sprig of Mistletoe. Barely fresh, but fresh enough to suffice for the moment. He carefully tip-toed over toward his friends, the rest finally seeing what he was doing and why.

Danny and Sam didn't even expect him to suddenly stick a piece of mistletoe between the two, surprising them. The two then blushed and moved their hands away from each other. "Tucker, what are you doing?" Danny asked, staring at the mistletoe. Tucker wiggled it a little.

"You know what."

"Haha. No." Sam said, the two turning their heads away. Tucker scowled.

"You can't just turn away from mistletoe like that!"

"Sure we can." Danny said. He looked toward his glass of cider. "Oh, be right back." he said, going for the cider. Jack then blocked it from him. Danny looked up. "Dad, what-"

"Not 'til you give Sam a kiss." he said. Danny's face burnt a bright red, as did Sam's. The group began to chant 'kiss her'. Sam stood up shyly and walked over to Danny.

"Danny, they're not gonna stop. Just make it quick and that'll be it." she said. Danny was hesitant, then the two quickly pecked on the lips and pulled back, earning claps and cheers. Danny resisted sighing in content, as did Sam. But neither said a word as they went back, Danny forgetting all about his cider, to just watch the fireworks.

Of course, by next year they kissed without any hesitation.


	4. Family Reunion

**Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman**

**Story (c) Me**

Danny stared at himself in the mirror. He was normally dressed- the outside morning light began to shine through the window. It was a family reunion in Arkansas.

Of course, one that wasn't originally planned. This came about after Danny had revealed himself to be half ghost and Danny Phantom. They had heard the story from his mom of how he got his powers; and now it was time for the party. Danny could hear outside cars pulling in and almost some voices somewhere else in the house.

He and his family had arrived early so Danny could prepare for the party. But as he stayed in the bathroom, door locked, he only could stare in the mirror and think about what was going to happen. All the looks and stares he would receive; this probably wouldn't happen the next reunion, but still...

Knowing he was going to go out there and talk to them was painful to think about. A nervous lump swelled in his gut. His body was slightly stiff from anxiety. His parents had tried to be empathetic about his situation and told him they'd already explained some things to the family to ease pressure on him. But either way, he felt nauseous from nervousness. Soon, there was a knock at the door, startling him and making him look towards it in bewilderment. Was a family member trying-

"Danny?" Oh, his father's voice. Danny took in a breath.

"Yeah?"

"Are you coming out anytime soon? Grandma and Grandpa are trying to distract the family for your sake."

"Oh, tell 'em I said thank you so very much. Ugh, Dad...how'm I gonna do this? I've never been so nervous in my life; and I've fought the most terrifying ghosts in existence." he said. There was a pause, then Jack said something.

"Can I come in?"

"Sure. Let me unlock the door." he said. He walked up and opened the door. The minute Jack came in Danny locked the door again and breathed in relief no one had seen him. His father raised an eyebrow.

"Isn't locking the door a bit much?"

Danny shrugged. Sweat dripped down his forehead. "I dunno. Dad...what if...what if they don't like this?"

"They all flew in for this. I'm pretty sure if they didn't like it they wouldn't bother."

"What if I'm stared at all the time I'm out?"

"And your mother and I aren't already stared at for wearing jumpsuits all the time?"

"What if..."

"What if?"

Danny paused. He wasn't sure what to question exactly- but it felt like there was still a 'what if' he didn't know how to ask. Jack sighed and put an arm around his son.

"Son. I know how you feel, that pressured anxiety of embarrassment. But sitting here and worrying won't solve anything. We have to cast aside 'what if' and just roll with it." Jack said, giving a tight grip around the boy. His son still said nothing. Jack smiled a little. "If I walked out with you, would that make you feel better?" he asked. Danny was quiet for a moment, then nodded meekly.

Jack unlocked the bathroom door. Sharing one more look, the two went out. Jack didn't take his arm away from Danny, providing some comfort for the boy. Danny looked down as they entered the living room, avoiding eyes he knew were at him. He heard some 'hello's and he returned them quietly.

He wasn't sure what to do now- but as his younger cousin ran up, the littleun's excitement obvious, she ran right under Danny to meet his eyes. "Danny! Danny!" she cried happily. Danny smiled lightly.

"Hello, Elle."

"Danny! Can you turn into the ghostie?" she pleaded. Danny blushed awkwardly at that request that everyone heard. There were some calls of agreement to the request. The boy wasn't sure how to react or what to do, but his dad shook his lightly to encourage him. Danny looked up at his father, who gave him a proud grin. Then Danny pulled his head up to finally meet the curious- but not dubious- eyes of his family.

He managed to smile a little. "Goin' Ghost!" he cried, then allowed the rings to form and split, changing him into Danny Phantom.

While Danny's parents had seen him multiple times transform now, it was the first time that he ever transformed in front of the entire family. There was silence for a few minutes, then his cousin gave a squeal of excitement and hugged him. There were cheers and claps in the back. His glowing green eyes grew a little less worried and the lump in his gut seemed to fade.

Elle put her arms up. "Danny! Can you fly me around a little? PLEASE? I know you've done it with your girlfriend Sam. Please?"

"Elle!" his aunt's voice chided. She looked at her ghostly nephew. "Sorry, Danny, if you don't-"

"No, no, it's fine," Danny said, "I've done it many times before. I'll be happy to if it's okay with you." he offered. His aunt shook her head.

"Thank you very much, Danny, but the family just wants to chat together for a bit. Elle, he can fly you later."

"Aww!" the little girl moaned. Danny chuckled lightly.

"After Elle, I wanna be flied around, too!" Another cousin of the same age of Elle said. Danny laughed.

"Sure, no problem. But later, okay guys?"

"Okay."

"So, Danny..." One of Danny's uncles started. "What sorta powers do you have?"

"Better yet, let's see 'em in the backyard!" his aunt exclaimed excitedly. There were approving and curious murmurs, and Danny finally managed to truly smile. This wasn't as bad as he thought.


	5. Autocorrect Saves the Day

**Thought of this when I was looking at funny autocorrects on the internet.**

Might've not published it, but Hannah (ghostgal4) said I should. Hope you like!

Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman

Facebook (c) Mark Zuckerberg.

Story (c) Me

Danny was panicked.

He had just made one of the worst mistakes ever. The boy meant to send a text to Sam and Tucker- "Haha, being Danny Phantom is fun sometimes!"- after he had successfully managed to take his anger out on the Box Ghost after he failed a test. It all went wrong when it got sent to his dad when he wasn't paying attention to the fact he accidentally selected for it to be sent to his father.

Danny didn't walk home after school immediately- he was too afraid to. Sam and Tucker tried to offer advice, none of which helped. Finally, as Danny sat down against a tree truck in the park, his phone buzzed with a new message. He grimaced, took a deep breath, and opened the phone.

It was a message from his dad, but not the one he was expecting. _"Haha, stupid autocorrect!"_ was what he got from his dad. He stared in shock at the message, before awkwardly typing out the next message-

_"OMG, I meant being RANDOM! Not Danny Phantom!"_ he wrote anxiously. After a few minutes, his dad texted back.

_"Haha, Danny, alright, that's going on Facebook. Do you need a ride home?"_

Danny sighed in deep relief and answered yes and told his dad where to get him. He fell back against the tree. Sometimes autocorrect saved the day.


	6. Sonic Boom

**The physics of all of this make absolutely no sense...but take the fics where you can get them. I'm not in the mood to make this adhere to the laws of physics. It wouldn't be as entertaining, and probably not as funny.**

**This is what happens when I watch too much MLP.**

**Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman**  
**Story (c) Me**

Danny stared at the far ground below. The summit of the mountain he was standing on had sparse grass beneath his feet that failed to waver in the wind like its brothers beside the white boots. The wind whistled up here and the air was somewhat thinner. Clouds crawled across the sky in their own merry way, ignoring the boy who was, at the moment, staring at the many a feet to the ground. His friends had become no more than mere silhouettes on the ground, much like the trees that gently brushed each other.

It had started with a dare. Danny had been practicing flight; the rest of his family was at a campsite with Sam and Tucker's parents not too far away. The press who had been following the families around since the near-end of the world. The three families decided that it would be nice to get a break, and- much to the parent Manson's dismay- camping topped the list. No over-crowded places to attract even more attention. Tucker had told Danny that although he was fast, he doubted that his best friend could ever break the sound barrier.

Danny, of course, took this as a challenge. Sam had been somewhat nervous about the idea, though she had no doubts Danny could go intangible in the worst situation. They dare not tell their parents; they would get in _so_ much trouble for this idea- for Danny to fly to the very tip of a mountain nearby the campsite and to dive off of it and do a swift turn when he got close enough to ground to break the sound barrier.

But now the boy was having second thoughts as he looked over the looming mountainside, feeling a wave of vertigo push him. He could not see the faces of his friends below and felt suddenly all alone on the mountain. A wave of anxiety filled him, but he bit his lip and looked down again. He then backed up to give himself some room to start, and with one last deep breath, he closed his eyes and ran as fast as he could. When he met the edge of the summit, he jumped and dove like an Olympic diver, except only with perhaps a bit less grace.

The air roared in his ears, screaming at him to stop. His eyes were forced open and were watering profusely, causing them to become dry within seconds. He had no idea how fast he was going at this point, but his mind shut off all other thoughts telling him what a terrible idea this was. As soon as he was in distance to start turning, he immediately flipped himself skyward and dashed up into the sky. By now he had gone nearly deaf and he couldn't tell if he broke the sound barrier; he couldn't tell if the booming he already heard had gotten louder or not.

He began to slow himself down, and eventually he was able to slow enough to stop. His ears were still pounding and his eyes were dry. His hair was a mess, pushed back comically. The boy sighed and blinked his eyes rapidly to restore moisture, and he began to descend. He fixed his hair the best he could, although it was still pushed back and stray hairs were mussed. He spied his friends approaching the ground near him, so he landed by them and transformed back. Danny coughed and blinked again. "Did I do it?" he asked. Tucker gave him an incredulous look.

"Of course you did, you just about woke up the whole world! Maybe you should do it again; I don't think they quite heard you in China." he said. Danny blinked in confusion.

"What? I can't hear you!" he said. "There's still pounding in my ears!"

"I SAID, YOU DID IT!" Tucker said, who then began snickering slightly.

"Oh, that's good. Real nice." Danny replied. Sam looked to him.

"Well, congrats. You broke the sound barrier, Danny, and almost risked your life in the process. You alright?"

"What?"

"I said, ARE YOU OKAY?" Sam asked. Danny nodded.

"Yeah! Just have a loud of pounding in my ears...and my eyes are really, really dry..."

Sam and Tucker suddenly paused, and Danny could not understand why. All he heard was some sort of muffled noise that he couldn't make out. They started yelling something that took him a minute to decipher, and then he froze.

Mr. and Mrs. Fenton.

He was royally screwed.

Indeed, his parents pushed their way through the thicket a moment later. They said something to his friends he couldn't understand, even with his father's booming voice. "WHAT? Wha'd you say?" he asked.

Maddie sighed. "He'll be fine eventually. But that's why people wear things like headphones and goggles when going that fast in planes."

"He actually broke the sonic barrier, though," Jack said, a little awed, "Dang. That takes guts to get that high up and then nosedive. But, ah, he's still in trouble."

"Of course." Maddie replied, rolling her eyes.

"WHAT? WHAT'D YOU SAY?" Danny demanded again. Maddie smiled.

"YOU'LL FIND OUT WHEN YOUR HEARING COMES BACK, DEAR!"

"OKAY!"


	7. Sidekick Training

**Danny Phantom (c) Butch Hartman**

It had been more than a relief to Danny when his parents had found out- and accepted him just fine the way he was. Gradually they began to treat it like any other normal facet of their lives- slowly but surely. Of course, it still grabbed Maddie and Jack's attention whenever Danny went ghost. They had seen it more than once by this point, but neither could resist stopping and watching in fascination- this greatly embarrassed Danny. Both knew that it bothered him that they watched so curiously every time, but they couldn't help it- as ghost scientists, his half ghost abilities were curious to them.

Danny knew things were going to be different now that his parents knew after the whole Disasteroid thing; this was just added onto the moment his father gave him a new title. That title was _Sidekick of Jack Fenton. _The boy did not try to object and rather agreed with him instead of arguing that he didn't need to be anyone's sidekick. His father was beyond pleased. Of course, he didn't know that his father would take the whole "son as a sidekick" role so seriously.

He went as far as to build a training course in the lab just for his son. Danny gawped at the hoops that were both on ceiling and on the ground, meant for him to start at the top hoop and quickly fly down and go through the next. A few solid walls waited at the end of the test of the hoops for him to go through, and then a bright red x on the floor beside a miniature shooting gallery where cardboard cutouts of ghosts and things that were not enemy would pop up. The last part was a bulls-eye on the ground- where he assumed the end was supposed to be, but he had a feeling there was some sort of trap set up for him to practice on before it ended. It couldn't be that easy.

Jack proudly grinned at his work and then his son. He shook his son's shoulder affectionately. "Ain't it beautiful, son? If you're going to be my sidekick, you need to be in top shape. And that means a weekly trip through this course. It took awhile, but I worked hard on this. I just modified the set up you, Sam, and Tucker already had with the remote controls, added on some features, and voila! The best sidekick training course in the United States of America, if not the world if I do say so myself."

Danny raised an eyebrow. "S- sure it isn't a bit much?"

"Nonsense! You've dealt with ghosts before; you can deal with an obstacle course. This should just be a walk in the park for you, Danny-boy. Just go through and we'll be all done for today. I even decided to get your favorite ice cream for after!"

He had him there. Bribery by ice cream worked. Danny sighed and nodded. "Alright." He flew up and waited in front of the hoop. "When do I start?" he asked. Jack held up a timer.

"Okay. Three...two...one! _Go!_" he declared, pressing the start button on the timer. Danny flew through the hoops with precision; he dove through the first one, did a dive bomb to the second one, located attached to the ground, then swerved through it and reached for the next one. He reached through all of the hoops with haste and ease, and he grinned.

"Easy enough!"

"Don't count your chickens until the eggs hatch, son. Keep going!" Jack replied promptly. Danny turned intangible and sped through the walls. Everything was fine and dandy until all of a sudden he crashed into the last one. He let out a grunt and turned tangible. He glared at the wall.

"_Of course he would trick me like that. One of them phase-proof; smart._" Danny flew up and over the wall and then situated himself on the x on the floor. Cutouts came up. The first one was a blob of a ghost; Danny quickly blasted it and successfully shot the next five that came up. It grew more difficult from there; popups or Jazz, Maddie, and Jack began to come up between the ghosts, which grew more rapid in speed of coming up and then down. He had to concentrate so he didn't hit any of the cutouts of his family. He managed to clear all of the ghosts and left the other targets unscathed- though he blasted Jazz's for fun. Jack frowned.

"I'm giving you a twenty second penalty for that!" he shouted. Danny groaned and then his eyes reached the bulls-eye. He landed on it and immediately shrouded himself in a ghost shield. Small missiles came towards him and exploded upon contact with the shield. The only thing that came out of the missiles was smoke, which momentarily blinded the outside world of the shield to him. But quickly the smoke faded and Jack blew a whistle he had around his neck. Danny released the shield. Jack checked the timer. "One minute and eleven seconds. However, you get a twenty second penalty for blasting the cutout of Jazz, leaving you with one minute and thirty-one seconds. Great for a first time shot at the course, but I bet you can do even better next week."

Jack put the timer away and wrote down the time and date on a chart he had nailed to the wall of the lab. He muttered to Danny while he wrote. "Good thing you caught onto the fact the bulls-eye would be too easy if that was the end. However, you had no true reason to fear the missiles. They were supposed to explode a foot away from you, and nothing would've happened; they just expelled smoke. It was to test your reaction time and to see what you would do in a situation like that."

Danny turned back to normal. "Fair enough. So what now?" he asked. Jack smiled and turned to his son.

"Now, son, we have ice cream. This wouldn't be as fun without something sweet at the end. Next week, fudge! Week after that, pie!" he proclaimed. Danny smiled.

"Sounds good. Training as a sidekick does have its upsides." he said. Jack pressed a button on the remote he had, and the equipment went back into the walls and floor. He and his son walked up the stairs to the main part of the house, leaving behind a lab waiting for next week's sidekick training.


	8. The Fentons in Traffic

The freeway was jam-packed with vehicles under an unrelenting sun in a cloudless sky, air conditioning the only refuge for the drivers. The cars crawled at a snail's pace, and sometimes, not at all for a moment or two at a time.

The G.A.V was among them, rolling slowly forth on the road. Inside, Jazz was napping, arms crossed, and head hanging over her chest. Danny was idly texting, eyes half-closed as he stifled a yawn. Jack was driving and Maddie working a GPS system as the two bantered.

"I knew we shouldn't have taken this freeway," Jack complained irritably, "or left earlier."

Maddie didn't look up from the screen she was poking at. "It's probably still the fastest route to Alicia's, Jack." she replied, sounding a little annoyed, "the other way is much longer and might still be crowded with traffic.

"Still. God, maybe we should've braved the planes again and just dropped over her house. There's probably an accident and a bunch of looky-loos slowing down to look." Jack griped. Maddie rolled her eyes, but said nothing. "Ugh. I wish I could just charge past these slowpokes and…" Jack trailed off, eyes widening. A grin began to grow on his face, and Maddie raised an eyebrow.

"Dear?" she asked. Jack glanced to the backseat momentarily and back on the road.

"Danny?"

Said boy jolted in his seat, having zoned out during his parents' conversation. He turned his head forward. "Yeah?"

"Can you do your old man a huge favor?"

"Sure," Danny said, merely expecting his father to ask him to hand him something, "what is it?"

"Can you use your powers to turn the car intangible so we can get to our next rest stop faster?" Jack asked, trying to sound as casual as possible. Danny gasped slightly.

"Wh…what?" he blushed and looked away, averting his gaze. "I…um…"

"Jack!" Maddie exclaimed, crossing her arms. "The next rest stop is at least two hours away with the traffic. I don't know if Danny can handle keeping us all intangible for half that long— and invisible. If he doesn't use invisibility, it could get us unwanted attention."

"Ah, it'd probably be a little less than an hour!" Jack reassured her, leaning forward, staring at the line of cars ahead. "Danny, you're tough, I think you can handle it." He looked back towards him again. "So, what do you say? Please?"

"Uh…uh…" Danny desperately wanted to say no; it had only been several months since his parents (and the world) had discovered what he could do. But Jack's brow was furrowed, and he was giving a wide grin at his son.

"…Okay. Pull over." the teenager muttered, still blushing. Jack turned his attention back to the road.

"Great!" Jack obeyed and pulled to the side of the road. By now, Jazz was beginning to awaken, and she yawned. Rubbing her eyes, she slowly stretched and glanced about, gradually registering what was going on.

"What's going on?" she asked sleepily. Maddie sighed.

"Your brother's going to turn the car invisible and intangible so we can get to the next rest stop sooner."

"What?" Jazz's eyes widened and she turned to her brother. "Danny, are you sure you can handle that? It's awhile until—"

"—I know. And…probably. I'll be fine." he reassured her, faking a smile. He blushed even more as he realized all eyes were upon him as he readied to transform. "You guys, um, you don't have to stare at me."

Immediately Maddie and Jazz turned away, getting the clue. Jack, however, raised an eyebrow. "Why?" he asked, "it's not like we don't know what you're going to do. Going ghost, as you'd say."

Danny winced. "Well, I just don't like being watched."

"Oh." Jack finally turned away, and Danny realized, in all his embarrassment, that it was still just as awkward as everyone looked away. The rings of light formed and passed over his body with a schwing, and he was in ghost form. Closing his eyes, he concentrated and shoved his hands against the seat.

Within seconds, the vehicle disappeared from view and Jack was off, driving through all the traffic faster than he had ever driven. Jazz and Maddie yelped as they were thrown back against the seat, and Danny's eyes widened in terror, clinging onto the seat as hard as he could. Jack, however, was having the time of his life. He hooted and laughed with glee, disregarding white and yellow lines and dots, zooming by at top speed.

"We should've done this much sooner!" he cried giddily, "Woo-hoo!"

His son smiled weakly and sighed. It was going to feel like a long drive.

* * *

"Danny? Danny, you can stop."

Maddie's voice came with great relief to her son. Danny released his tight grip on the seat and stopped his powers, exhaling deeply. With white rings again, he was human, and he looked up tiredly at his mother. His mom was peering into the back seat at him, frowning worriedly. "Hi. How are you feeling?"

"Tired." he stated simply, huffing out another breath.

"You can undo your seat belt, we're parked. Breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth, sweetie. Are you dizzy? Lightheaded at all?" Maddie asked as she came into the back, putting a hand on her son's forehead.

"Fine, I guess. Tired," he repeated, "and hungry."

"You're in luck. We're at a restaurant!" Jack piped up, "You did great. You made it for an hour." He beamed at his son. "I knew you could do it."

Danny smiled weakly back, eyes half-closed. "Thanks."

Everyone piled out of the car, ignoring stunned passersby. Danny lumbered out of the car, head hanging down. A large arm wrapped around him, and he looked up to see his father was giving him a proud grin and a one-armed hug.

"How's about you and me share a fudge sundae here, huh? You earned it." Jack asked cheerfully.

"That'd be nice, Dad," Danny said with a genuine smile, "that'd be nice."


End file.
